UK considers introducing a Ukrainian language GCSE exam

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Ukrainian children who arrived in the UK after the outbreak of war are facing a troubling paradox when it comes to GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education) language exams. Of all the East Slavic languages, only Russian is currently available as an option.

This article is also available in Russian here

The situation has raised concern among both Ukrainian and British authorities. Rachel de Souza, the Children’s Commissioner for England, said: “These children rightly want to feel proud of their culture and language, and I’m pleased to see this initiative finally gaining momentum.”

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Ukraine’s education minister, Oksen Lisovyi, met with his British counterpart, Bridget Phillipson, to stress that encouraging teenagers who have fled Russian aggression to study Russian can deepen psychological trauma. In response, Phillipson has urged exam boards to explore reinstating the Ukrainian GCSE – a qualification scrapped in 1995 due to low uptake. A dedicated working group has now been tasked with moving the plan forward.

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The assessment body AQA has confirmed that it is considering the development of a Ukrainian language GCSE. However, experts caution that designing and implementing a new qualification could take up to four years.

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In the meantime, St Mary’s Ukrainian School, which has 13 branches across the UK, has offered to act as an examination hub. According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Education, interest in the qualification is at an all-time high: around 27,000 refugee children and 7,000 children from the Ukrainian diaspora have expressed a desire to take the exam. It is hoped that the GCSE will help preserve cultural identity – and smooth the path for children who one day hope to return to Ukraine.

Share this article with your Russian-speaking friends – you can find it in the Russian version of Afisha.London magazine’s website: read here

Cover photo: Ivan Samkov / Pexels

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